


My Experience at University

by soer



Series: otpb 2014 [4]
Category: Kuroko no Basuke | Kuroko's Basketball
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Gen, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-03-02
Updated: 2014-03-02
Packaged: 2018-01-14 07:13:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 6,741
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1257538
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/soer/pseuds/soer
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Aomine meets his roommate for the first time.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Aomine walked down the hallway of his dormitory, scanning the row of doors for the number written down on the scrap of paper he held in his hand.

_Room 615…_

He found it ten minutes later and upon entering the room, inspected it. The size inside wasn’t very large, but there was still enough room for two people to live in comfortably. Aomine really hoped his roommate wasn’t one of those pretentious brats he hated talking to. Half of his high school classmates were like that and it annoyed him to no end.

Speaking of his roommate, Aomine glanced down at the paper again. It said the other male’s name was Kuroko Tetsuya, but there wasn’t a picture, nor did it seem that the other had arrived yet. Aomine shrugged and studied the two sides of the room. That would mean he got first pick of the room then. Deciding he liked the left side better, he moved to drop his bag onto the bed to claim the spot when a voice came out of nowhere, startling him.

“Sorry, but I already claimed that side, if you don’t mind.”

The sudden voice made him jump at least an inch into the air, and he whirled around to face the stranger. He was surprised to find that the other was a good foot shorter than him and had light blue hair with a matching set of eyes. Well, he couldn’t judge the other on appearance seeing as how he was completely out of place within his own family by being naturally tanned even though the rest of them were all pale-skinned. With the exception of his deceased great-great-great-grandfather whom he had never met, of course. That was the only proof that they had been able to use to convince Aomine he wasn’t an adopted child.

“Eh? But I got here first,” Aomine responded after recovering from his surprise. “You’re Kuroko?”

“On the contrary Aomine-san, I arrived one hour ago.” His roommate said, walking over to the desk situated right beside the bed and opened the drawer. Aomine was dismayed to find it already filled up with papers and pens. There was also a stack of books atop of the desk, apparently not for decoration after all. “And yes, I am your new roommate, Kuroko Tetsuya.”

“Oh.” Aomine felt like a fool. “Uh, why isn’t your bed made?” he asked awkwardly to change the subject.

“It’s because my bed sheets were accidentally left behind in the car so I had to wait for my parents to turn around.” Kuroko replied. Aomine noticed that his tone hadn’t changed once, and a sense of irritation came over him. Was he being made fun of?

“I guess I’ll be taking over this bed then,” he said, going over to the empty bed. While Aomine took out his stuff, Kuroko began to make his bed. Aomine had only two more bags to go through when his elbow hit one of his duffel bags, sending it flying to the floor, and because it had been open, everything naturally spilled out.

Kuroko, finished with his task, went over to help pick up the mess. Unfortunately, among the clothes he had packed, Aomine had also stashed away parts of his gravure idol magazine collection, which was now spread on the floor beside his T-shirts. Well. This was awkward.

“Ah, thanks,” Aomine said as Kuroko handed him what he had gathered from the floor. When Kuroko didn’t respond and just turned away, Aomine felt a twinge of irritation come over him. Just what was his problem anyway?

Tch. Whatever. No one ever said he’d have to get along with his roommate anyway. Aomine resumed settling in, ignoring Kuroko who occupied the other side of the room.

Already they were off to a bad start.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aomine and Momoi have a skype chat.

Due to their schedules, Aomine rarely saw his quiet roommate, and thus he never failed to be surprised when he found a presence where he could have sworn had been empty space only a few moments before.

“Dai-chan how are you doing? Are you getting along with your roommate?” Satsuki’s voice filtered through Aomine’s laptop, her pink eyes looking at him eagerly through the webcam.

Aomine ran a hand through his hair. “Hah? We hardly ever talk. I think he’s a snob actually.”

Momoi scowled. “What? Did you even try to get along? Dai-chan, you promised me you would get more involved when you started university, remember?”

“It’s not like I need to get along with him. We’re not required to be friends with all the people we meet Satsuki. Besides, I’ve meet some pretty interesting guys in my gen ed classes.” Aomine told her.

“Oh yeah! How are lectures going?” Momoi asked, temporarily distracted away from the earlier topic. “Were you able to talk with the advisor yet?”

“Eh, lectures are so-so. Some of the classes were boring, but I did talk with the advisor and some of the professors in the department are pretty cool.”

She smiled. “I’m really happy to hear that Dai-chan. I was worried since we decided to go different schools in the end, but I think I can relax a little if you’re taking an active interest in the department.”

Aomine shrugged. “I’ve gotten better since high school Satsuki. There’s no need to worry. How’s your school anyway?”

Momoi’s eyes shined brightly and she began to talk in earnest about the university she had enrolled in. Aomine’s expression softened as he heard how happy she was. Momoi had ended up going to school five hours away from him in order to pursue her major of psychology, while he focused in the criminal justice department. Aomine was actually really glad to hear she was enjoying her time there, because up until the last minute, Momoi had seriously been thinking of following Aomine to university despite the fact that his school was less specialized in her major. She had been worried that Aomine’s bad habits would resurface, and Aomine felt bad for causing her to feel this way. In the end, it had been his pushing her to chase after her dreams that led to where they were today, and Aomine was relieved to know it had been the right decision.

“I really do love it here,” Momoi said. “Thanks for supporting me Dai-chan.”

He scoffed at her. “Baka. What are friends for?”

She smiled back at him cheerfully. “What indeed. Don’t forget to keep up with your studies Dai-chan. And try to get along with your roommate okay? I’m sure he’s not a bad person.”

“Yeah, yeah. Don’t have to tell me twice.” Aomine said, and ended communication with his childhood friend, stretching his arms above him to relieve some of the stiffness that had occurred during their conversation.

The door opened and Aomine turned around in his swivel chair to see Kuroko enter, one of the rare times their schedule intersected. Recalling Momoi’s words, Aomine decided to wing it.

“Hey, Kuroko, want to catch dinner in ten minutes?”

Kuroko was startled to hear Aomine address him, since the other had pointedly chosen to ignore him for the past six weeks. “…Sure,” he said and set his textbooks down on at his desk having just returned from class.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Unexpectedly Kuroko is a fantastic tutor.

Even though he told Momoi not to worry about him, Aomine found himself troubled by his workload for the second semester. Especially the literature class he was taking at the moment. The material was difficult for him to understand and it didn’t help that the lectures only bored him to death. But the midterm was coming up in two weeks and he _had_ to ace it.

“Augh, this is so boring!” Aomine cried out in frustration, catching Kuroko’s attention.

“…What’s the matter Aomine-kun?” Kuroko asked, looking up from the page he was reading at the moment.

“I have a midterm coming up in two weeks and I still don’t understand the material.” Aomine rubbed his head in frustration. “It doesn’t help that notes I took are all jumbled up because the professor was so boring. Uuugh I don’t wanna do this…”

“…Would you like me to help tutor you Aomine-kun?”

“Hah?” Aomine turned to Kuroko. “You would?” He frowned. “But… how could you help me?”

“…Aomine-kun, I am in the same literature class as you.”

“…What?!!” Aomine couldn’t believe he hadn’t realized this earlier. “Since when?”

Kuroko couldn’t help but chuckle at Aomine’s obvious shock. “Since the beginning. But I usually arrive to lecture ten minutes ahead of time and sit in the front.”

“…Oh.” Aomine was quiet, digesting this newfound information, but it certainly didn’t last for very long. “You sure you can help me though?”

Kuroko laughed. “Yes, I can help you out.”

Aomine grinned at him excitedly. “Great! Let’s get started.”

It turned out that Kuroko was actually a decent tutor. While Aomine was rather slow to understand the beginning of the material, Kuroko was patient in his ways, explaining it in various ways until Aomine understood. Aomine wasn’t stupid—as soon as he was able to grasp the concept, he flew through the pages with ease, but give him one sitting in lecture and he was lost like a foreigner visiting a new city for the first time.

Somehow, they managed to finish reviewing all the material in time for midterm amongst all the other classes they were taking, and no one was more elated than Aomine at that moment when they received their scores back.

“YES!” He had shouted, drawing attention to himself, but Aomine didn’t care who heard him. He had thought for sure he was going to fail, but he had received a close to perfect score, something he knew had only been achieved by through the help his quiet roommate had given him. Excitedly he showed Kuroko his score, and Kuroko smiled truly glad their efforts had paid off.

“If you keep this up you’ll be able to ace the final with no problem,” Kuroko remarked as they walked back to the dorms.

“Yeah, but it was thanks to your help I passed anyway,” Aomine said. “If you hadn’t offered to help me study I would have failed already.”

“That’s true,” Kuroko acknowledged.

They reached their room to find a brown box sitting outside the door addressed to Aomine.

“Huh, I wonder what this is,” Aomine said picking up the box and shaking it lightly. “I don’t remember ordering anything…” He opened the box while walking into his room, dumping his bag onto the floor by his desk.

The box contained a basketball and beside it was a pink postcard with the following message:

 _With all the effort you put into your work you deserve some relaxation. Enjoy it, but don’t let it take over all your time! Congrats on your good score. – Satsuki_  

Aomine grinned and set the notecard aside, relishing in the feeling of having a basketball between his hands again. The bounce of the ball captured Kuroko’s attention, something that did not escape Aomine’s notice.

“Hey, do you play?”

Kuroko seemed almost shy in answering. “Sort of. But I’m not very good at it.”

Aomine was elated. Who knew that the other also played?  He felt dumb for not asking Kuroko before—they probably would’ve gotten along sooner had he done so. “That’s fine. I haven’t touched a ball since the second year of high school so I’m pretty rusty too. Come one, let’s go play!”

Kuroko looked at him with surprise. “Now?”

Aomine nodded. “Come on, after getting back those scores we _have_ to celebrate. What better way is there than by playing our favorite sport?” he paused for a second. “Basketball _is_ your favorite sport, right?”

Kuroko smiled in amusement. Really, Aomine was amusing sometimes. “Yes, it is.”

Aomine’s smile returned in full force. “Great! We have no problem then. Let’s go!”


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aomine didn’t think Kuroko even knew what alcohol was.

Ever since Kuroko helped Aomine pass his midterm (and subsequently his final when the time came to it) and Aomine had discovered they had in common a love for basketball, they had become fast friends, the icy animosity between them during the first semester a forgotten thing.

However, even with all the time Aomine had spent with Kuroko, it had never crossed his mind that he would ever get to see the other drunk. He didn’t see the type to touch alcohol never mind _consuming_ it.

“Tetsu don’t yank on my hair,” Aomine said in a slightly reprimanding tone, wincing as the shorter male only proceeded to tug on his short locks again, just because he could. But Aomine let it go, since this was rare situation and he could hardly blame the other for his actions at this point.

It was a long walk back to the dorm from the place Kuroko had been at, but Aomine didn’t mind, hoping the cold air would help the other become sober faster. He was currently carrying his roommate piggy-back style and was happy to find out the other was as light as he looked, not an unpleasant weight on his back.

“You know Tetsu, I thought you didn’t even know what alcohol was. You don’t seem like the type to drink.” Aomine commented, his voice the only disturbance in the cold air.

“Of course I know what alcohol is,” Kuroko replied slowly, his voice a low rumble beside Aomine’s ear. “I just lost a lot, so I had to drink a lot.”

“Is that so?” Aomine laughed and Kuroko tightened his arms around Aomine, burying his forehead into the other’s shoulder. The warm rumbling wasn’t an unpleasant sensation and Kuroko wouldn’t mind it terribly if it happened again.

“Aomine-kun, thank you,” Kuroko said after a moment had passed between them.

“Eh?” Aomine, who had been lost to his own thoughts, was brought back to the present. “Ah, it’s no big deal. We’re friends aren’t we? I don’t mind helping you out. Have you even been drunk before?”

Kuroko frowned. “ ’m not drunk,” he said. “And not just for helping me. But basketball. Thank you for basketball.”

“Huh?” Aomine wasn’t sure what Tetsu meant by that. “What do you mean? It’s not like I invented the sport or anything.”

Kuroko started to shake his head but stopped as the motion caused him to feel dizzy. Regardless, Aomine felt the motion and waited patiently for Kuroko to voice his thoughts.

“I… I told you didn’t I? I was really bad at basketball in middle school…” Kuroko laid his head on Aomine’s shoulder and sighed. “You saw what I was like on court. I was terrible.”

“So what? That doesn’t matter.” Aomine responded. “You work harder than some of the best players back at my old school. I’ve never seen anyone go at it like you have, and you never give up. As long you still have the will for it, I know you can improve. Believe in yourself a little more Tetsu, ’cuz I do.”

Kuroko felt his face turn even warmer than it was already, and he was glad for the cool night air batting his face. He was also extremely happy that Aomine wasn’t facing him at the moment, so his red face wouldn’t be seen. “…That’s what I mean. I actually gave up on basketball during freshman year. I wasn’t improving at all, and the other students mocked my efforts all throughout middle school so I stopped… But I still really like it, and ever since I started playing with you, I’ve remembered why I loved it in the first place.” His mind was starting to clear up, Kuroko could tell, but he still felt out of it.

Aomine was taken aback by this sudden admission. Their conversation had gone into serious territory when he wasn’t looking, but he wouldn’t let himself be put off by it. He also couldn’t help the slight blush that crept up his face upon hearing Kuroko’s compliment. “I also put basketball aside in high school,” Aomine admitted. “I actually had some pretty terrible habits back then, but Satsuki help me sort out all my issues, which is how I’m able to be here today. The reason I quit… Well, everything was just about winning… Basketball wasn’t fun for me anymore and became a source of my stress instead of relieving it, so I stopped. But you know what Tetsu? I had a lot of fun playing with you, and I’m glad for it, because I never thought I would feel this way again.”

The dormitory building loomed up ahead now, and it didn’t take very long for them to reach their room, where Aomine gently settled Kuroko down onto his bed. Sometime on the way up the tipsy other had passed out and was now dead asleep, so Aomine went through the rest of the way in silence, taking the time to tuck Kuroko into bed and made sure he seemed comfortable before turning himself in for the night.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Momoi comes over for a visit.

Because of their busy schedules the two of them often stayed up late and didn’t do much to pick up after themselves, since their priority was only on studying.

So it was inevitable that the room became eventually became something terrible to look at, pointed out by a friend who had stopped by to drop off the lecture notes for Aomine. He hadn’t cared too much about it at the time, waving aside the other’s observation and putting it in the back of his mind where it was eventually forgotten. It was only when Momoi informed him that she was coming over to visit in two days that his friend’s comment came into his mind. Examining his room, Aomine wasn’t pleased to realize he could never ever _ever_ show this room to her in the state it was in at the moment.

Which is how he found himself holding two full bags of trash while Kuroko had run down to the store to purchase some air fresheners. After an hour of momentary panic, he had taken Kuroko aside to explain the situation and together they came up with a strategy to make the room look as good as new for Momoi’s arrival. However, it seemed the two of them had underestimated how dirty the room really was, as Aomine found himself picking up random pieces of trash from the floor for a good two hours, wincing every time he found something especially terrible.

“When will this end?” Aomine moaned in despair as he scrubbed a particularly tough stain on the floor while Kuroko organized the desks for the both of them.

“We will be finished soon if we follow our planned procedure, Aomine-kun. Don’t despair just yet.”

“I know, I know,” Aomine said, moving on to wipe the rest of the floorboard. “You done over there? What’s next on the list?”

Kuroko put away the pile of notes neatly into a folder before shoving it into the drawer. “Not quite. I think washing the bed sheets were next though.”

Aomine groaned. “What about the window? Did we clean the window yet?”

Kuroko shook his head. “No, not yet.”

Aomine groaned but kept working, determined to finish.

Eventually the two of them were able to make everything spotless and ready by the time Momoi arrived for her visit, and they celebrated their completion with a bottle of Pocari.

“Wow, this place is really nice!” Momoi commented as soon as she entered their room. “Oh! You must be Tetsu-kun! I’m Momoi Satsuki, nice to meet you!” Momoi said when she spotted Kuroko in the room. “I’ve heard so much about you from Dai-chan, so I’m happy to finally see you in person.”

Kuroko bowed in return. “It’s the same for me. Nice to meet you at last Momoi-san.”

Momoi smiled at him and then jabbed Aomine in the ribs. “Dai-chan! Why didn’t you tell me your roommate was so cute?”

“Hah?” Aomine rubbed his side. “Why would I ever tell you that? I don’t need you to bug him twenty-four seven Satsuki.”

“Don’t be mean Dai-chan.” Momoi scolded lightly. “Never mind that,” she said and walked around the room, beginning to inspect it with interest. “This room is so neat… Honestly, I’m really surprised. I thought it’d be a pigsty, considering all the rooms at my school.”

Aomine feigned hurt in his voice. “I’m hurt. Didn’t I tell you it wasn’t going to be like that?”

Momoi shrugged. “It’s more believable to me that you guys spent the last two days massively cleaning up the place rather than believing you kept things this spotless and organized since the start of the first semester.”

Aomine was happy that Momoi’s back was facing him so she couldn’t see him wince at that statement. “Yeah, well you were wrong.” He said half-heartedly.

“Momoi-san, what’s your future career?” Kuroko said to steer the topic in a different direction.

“Eh? Oh, well I haven’t decided yet, but I’m majoring in psychology. What do you plan on doing?”

“I want to be a kindergarten teacher, actually,” Kuroko admitted.

Momoi turned to him with interest. “Really? That’s not a bad choice.” She smiled. “Ah, I have yet to thank you for tutoring Dai-chan!” she said suddenly. “Thank you for helping him out!”

Kuroko smiled back. “It’s no problem at all. We’re both friends.”

Momoi wanted to swoon at the sight of his smile, but refrained from doing so. “You’re so polite! I think if you were able to teach Dai-chan, you can _definitely_ teach a bunch of children, Tetsu-kun!”

Kuroko was happy to hear the compliment. “Thank you for your words Momoi-san.”

“Mou, Dai-chan, where’s your kitchen? I wanna make something and share my happiness through food!” Momoi said, walking out of the room.

“HAH?!” Aomine rushed after her immediately in panic. “Satsuki waiiit!!!”


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Breakfast for the two of them ends up being rather normal.

“Have you guys considered moving into an apartment together? It would definitely be cheaper than staying in the dorms.”

Momoi’s innocent yet serious question was how the two of them ended up moving out of the dorms and into their own apartment not too far away. Some would say it was a stroke of luck, but Aomine and Kuroko had in reality spent hours and hours scouring for a decent space. And as soon as they found it, they latched onto it immediately, landing them where they were in now in their second year as university students.

Aomine yawned as he entered the kitchen, still not quite awake. Kuroko was already there, rummaging around the fridge.

“What’re you doing Tetsu?”

“I’m thinking about making some pancakes but I can’t find the butter.” Kuroko replied as he moved around the jam and cheese they had stored away on the middle shelf.

“Did you check the behind the juice? I think we still have a stick there.” Aomine offered, coming to a stop beside him.

Kuroko turned his head to the side of the fridge where they kept the juice and like Aomine said, found a stick of butter. “Thanks Aomine-kun,” Kuroko said and set out all the ingredients he needed onto the table. Having done that, he began to make the mix while Aomine walked over to the stove and to heat up the pan.

Since it seemed the both of them had just woken up, they worked in silence, handing each other the necessary ingredients that was required until they had finished making pancakes, where at that point they started to feel more awake.

Aomine bit into the pancake with relish. “Mmm, this is sooo good,” he said, pouring some more maple syrup over his stack of pancakes. Though he had started to cook in the beginning, Kuroko had quickly taken over the task. Apparently, Momoi’s bad skills had rubbed off onto him so he was useless at cooking.

“I’ll get better one day though,” Aomine remarked. “Otherwise it’ll just be Satsuki trying to prepare meals and I don’t want to end up in the hospital.” He shuddered to remember the first time he had tried her cooking.

“I look forward to it,” Kuroko said, taking a sip of milk from his cup and then eating another pancake. His stack as considerably less than Aomine’s since the other ate _a lot_ more than he did, but Kuroko didn’t mind making so many. “You’re going to wash the dishes though, considering I made all these pancakes.”

“Eh?” Aomine’s fork stopped in mid-air. “But I cut up the fruits!”

Kuroko smiled at Amine. “Yes, but who made the good stack of pancakes you’re praising right now?”

Aomine felt chills go down his spine. Who knew Tetsu could be scary over meals? “A-Alright, I got it; I’ll do all the dishes.” But in any case, he agreed with Kuroko’s statement. It was the least he could do since Kuroko had done most of the work.

The scary part of Kuroko’s smile disappeared as he bit into a strawberry. “Great. I’ll dry when you’ve finished,” he offered at the last moment, and Aomine brightened up to hear that.

So that was how they ended up spending their weekend morning, headed out to play basketball some hours later as a deserved break away from reading.


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aomine hates his neighbors.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Implied sex

“Uungh Yu… Yukio!”

“Ryouta… Ryouta!”

Aomine wanted to bash his head against the wall.

Ever since their new neighbors had moved into the apartment complex next door, Aomine hasn’t been able to get in a wink of sleep. This was mainly due to the fact that his neighbors insisted on having loud sex every night for the past _seven weeks up until maybe five in the morning._ It drove him up the wall, and because he hadn’t been getting enough sleep, he was starting to fall behind in his studies.

In light of this new problem, Aomine had taken to staying on campus and studying there until he couldn’t study anymore, where he then returned home, hoping he could just pass out like a light on his bed. Unfortunately, it didn’t work like that, and Aomine ended up even more exhausted than usual. He couldn’t sleep in the living room because the couch wasn’t long enough for his legs to _not_ stick over one end, and he didn’t have time to wash the futons so he couldn’t sleep on the floor either.

“Aomine-kun are you alright?” Kuroko asked in concern when Aomine laid his head down on the table. “You look exhausted.”

Aomine blearily looked at his friend. “I am, Tetsu. You don’t know how frustrated and tired I am. I swear those damn neighbors of ours have _no life_. I can hear them going at it during _ungodly_ hours of the morning Tetsu, I can’t sleeeeep.” Aomine wanted to cry. “I’ve banged on the wall probably a hundred times now, but they. Just. Won’t. STOP.” Aomine set his head down on the table again. “I don’t think I’ve had a full night’s sleep in seven weeks Tetsu. I haven’t had a good night’s sleep since the day they moved in!!!”

Kuroko was astonished that Aomine had managed to last this long. This problem had been brought up in the past, and though Kuroko had offered to share his bed with Aomine until the problem could be resolved, he had refused because he was afraid the both of them wouldn’t fit, and they definitely didn’t need two sleep-deprived people walking around.

They had tried to commune with their neighbors of course, but they seemed to have really bad timing, because every time they went over, no one was home. Kuroko looked at Aomine’s exhausted face. He seemed to be sleeping now, but Kuroko knew better than to believe that. Aomine was unexpectedly a light sleeper, and would wake up from deep sleep at the hint of any kind of jarring noise. Which was why this was such a problem, because at this rate, Aomine could would definitely fail all his classes, he was already behind and going to tutoring, but there really wasn’t much one could do without sleep. This couldn’t go on.

“Aomine-kun,” Kuroko lightly shook Aomine’s shoulder and the other snapped awake, looking at him but momentarily dizzy.

“Huh? What?” he asked blearily.

“This can’t go on. For the moment, please use my bed. I can take the couch until we can resolve this issue,” Kuroko informed him.

“Eh? But, I don’t wanna kick you out of your own bed Tetsu. And I told you, I don’t think I will fit.” Aomine said, but slowly got up anyway, with Kuroko helping him to his feet.

“You won’t know until you try. Come on.”

Together they went into Kuroko’s room, albeit at a slower pace than usual and carefully set Aomine onto Kuroko’s mattress. Kuroko was worried that Aomine would protest again, but it turned out there wasn’t much to worry about, because as soon as Aomine’s body felt the soft mattress of a proper bed, his body shut down and he was out like a light. Due to how quickly and unexpectedly this happened, Kuroko got dragged down as well, and couldn’t escape the clutches of his stronger roommate who was unconsciously using him as a teddy bear.

 _We should’ve just done this earlier—we both fit fine,_ Kuroko thought with a sigh. The warmth of Aomine against him was making Kuroko drowsy. He hadn’t been as affected as Aomine in regards to the problem with their neighbors, but noticing Aomine’s condition had him worrying about the other for longer than usual, making him tired mentally rather than physically. He had also stopped by Aomine’s room once during these times and had been traumatized for a whole week as a result, so he could see why Aomine was so frustrated. He couldn’t imagine enduring hearing seven weeks’ worth of rough sex at all. But, now that they had figured out a temporary solution, hopefully the both of them would recover sooner, and in the future confront their annoying neighbors. The movement of Aomine’s chest timed to his breaths soon lulled Kuroko to sleep and they stayed like that for a long time.


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aomine and Kuroko go grocery shopping.

Eventually they caught their neighbors and settled down for a long, long chat. In the end, it was agreed that sex would be limited in order to preserve the sanity of the two university students. Aomine was so happy he could finally sleep in his own bed that he actually rejoiced and spent the next three hours napping on it, finally not disturbed by their neighbors for once.

So now, with their sleep schedules back on track, Aomine was able to devote himself to his studies and catch up on all the material he missed. He attended extra tutoring sessions and regularly visited the professor to make sure he wasn’t misunderstanding the past few lectures he had missed. Actually, Kuroko was astonished by the intensity of Aomine’s determination to catch up in his studies. When asked about this, Aomine had chuckled and said he was “in the zone,” or something to that extent. Momoi later explained to Kuroko that Aomine had first developed the technique in basketball, but with her help, had adjusted it enough for Aomine to apply it to his studies. This worked especially when he was in dire need.

“Aomine-kun we still need salt, eggs, cheese, bread, mushrooms and cranberry sauce,” Kuroko said, looking down at the list. “Hand me those noodles would you?”

At the moment, the two of them were in the supermarket shopping for groceries since all their supplies had run low.

“Tetsu can we get some donuts too?” Aomine asked while handing Kuroko the noodles.

Kuroko frowned. “Unless you have some extra money lying around, we are not getting any donuts.” Kuroko walked onward, turning his head left and right as he scanned the aisles for the items he wanted, while Aomine pushed the cart beside him.

Aomine pouted. “But we haven’t gotten any snacks,” he complained. “I want to eat something sweet—I’ve been studying like crazy for the past few weeks. Don’t I deserve any sweets Tetsu?”

Kuroko didn’t fall victim to Aomine’s pleas. “No, you don’t. Because the last time you used the kitchen you set it on fire, which cost us a lot of money to repair.”

Aomine winced at the memory, but didn’t have any retort to say because Kuroko was right. “It really was an accident,” he said, pushing the cart forward. “I didn’t mean to set the kitchen on fire, honest!”

Kuroko sighed. “I know you didn’t mean to, Aomine-kun. But there’s no changing the fact you did, so I’m not going to be lenient about it anymore. If you want to cook, you’ll have to prove it to me without burning us out of a home. So no donuts.” He grabbed another item from the shelf and set it down in the cart, crossing it off his list as he did so.

Aomine frowned but couldn’t contest it at all. “Ah, fine, fine. Do we have everything we need?”

Kuroko shook his head. “No, not yet.”

The two of them spent the next hour or so at the supermarket buying everything they needed before returning back to their apartment with the help of another friend. Afterwards, they made a simple dinner (the only thing Aomine had been allowed to help out with was chopping up the vegetables and stirring the soup) and spent the rest of that evening watching action movies until it was time for bed.


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aomine and Kuroko spend a day on the beach.

“Tetsu let’s go to the beach,” Aomine had suggested one afternoon.

Kuroko had raised his eyebrow at that. What brought this on, all of a sudden? “…Why?” he asked, eyeing the other curiously.

“Because we need variety and spontaneity in our lives,” Aomine had responded immediately. “Besides, don’t you ever want to just get away for a while?”

And so, this led them to where they were now, standing at the beach with the sun beating down above them and the breeze blowing in from where the ocean faced. Surprisingly, there were very few people in the area, but Aomine loved it because according to him, they could claim all the space they wanted.

“Tetsu I’m going to set up the hammock!” Aomine shouted, running off to the section of the beach where there were trees. Kuroko couldn’t help but chuckle as he followed after the taller male at a slower pace. Aomine was acting like a child on his day off, but Kuroko supposed it was only natural since they had been cooped up for so long.

By the time he arrived at the spot, Aomine had already finished setting up the hammock and was currently taking off his shirt. “Ah, good timing Tetsu!” Aomine said when he noticed the other. “Can you rub the sunblock on my back? I’ll do yours right after.”

Kuroko took the tube from him and uncapped it, but told Aomine to sit down first. “You’re too tall for me to reach if you stay standing,” he informed him. Aomine laughed, but complied anyway, turning around to do the same for Kuroko as soon as he was sufficiently covered in sunblock.

Once that was taken care of, the two of them ran down into the water. Even if he hadn’t been as excited as the other at first, Aomine’s enthusiasm and energy was infectious, and Kuroko found himself exerting as much energy as the other. The water was initially cold but the longer he remained, the less it bothered him.

“Tetsu catch!” Aomine said, shooting an inflated ball over to him.

He hit it back, and just like that they were playing some sort of recreational water polo until they got tired of it. Their game lasted for three hours before they decided to return to shore. While Aomine rocked contentedly on the hammock, Kuroko let himself bask in the sun’s rays atop of their beach blanket. It had been cold in the water but with the sun beating down on him like this, Kuroko wasn’t all too worried about the temperature. He was only too happy to relax after get worn out by the tiring game. With the sound of waves in his ears and the sun’s rays filtering down onto him, it wasn’t long before he dozed off.

Kuroko woke up to find himself swaying, and for a moment he was disoriented, but he understood the reason for this soon enough. Sometime during his nap, Aomine had switched their places so that Kuroko had the hammock beneath the tree’s shade while Aomine lay splayed out in the sun. He couldn’t help the small flutter of his heart and the upturn smile that graced his face.

When later asked, Aomine had told Kuroko he was worried about the other getting sunburned since he was so pale, but his face clearly said there was more to the story. It didn’t matter—Kuroko was happy with both explanations.


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aomine and Kuroko enjoy movies on the couch.

Finals were over at last and the two blue-haired friends decided to spend the night celebrating by watching movies.

“Tetsu, would you be down for The Avengers?” Aomine asked, pulling it out from the little rack where they kept their small collection of DVDs.

“Sure.” The microwave sounded then, and Kuroko went to retrieve the popcorn while Aomine popped in the disc, flicking off the light after Kuroko had settled himself comfortably down on the couch. While the movie played they kept up a light commentary, having seen this particular film about a dozen times already.

“Black Widow is my favorite character,” Aomine commented to his companion when the redhead arrived on scene. “She is so sexy and kick-ass, don’t you agree Tetsu?”

Kuroko nodded. “I loved her action scene in Iron Man 2 when she took out all those men by herself. It was quite magnificent.”

Aomine grabbed another handful of popcorn. “I wonder when they’re going to make a Black Widow solo movie? I mean they’ve already got Hulk, Thor, Captain America, and Iron Man. The only two left are Hawkeye and Black Widow, and Sakurai told me that Hawkeye was possibly getting the green light.”

Kuroko popped another piece into his mouth. “We might have to wait for a couple of years, since Marvel is completely biased about female superheroes.”

Aomine looked scandalized. “What?! That’s totally bull! I would watch the shit out of a Black Widow solo movie! Not only would there be sexy moments, but think of all the bad-ass action scenes she would have!”

Kuroko patted Aomine’s arm. “I’m not part of the industry so I can’t help you there, but I agree with everything you said. Oh, there’s Agent Coulson!”

They stopped talking after a while, engrossed by the fast-paced action sequences. When the movie finally ended they moved on to the next, turning away from the action dramas to settle for comedy and laughing to their hearts content at the events occurring on screen.

After some hours, Kuroko became aware that he was the only one still conscious as Aomine had nodded off some ten minutes before. Quietly, Kuroko put the movie on mute so it wouldn’t disturb the taller male. Kuroko couldn’t help the fascination that came over him whenever he saw the other so unguarded like this. Asleep, Aomine’s face was smooth, unburdened by stress, and his body didn’t hold any of the tension that Kuroko usually saw on him. Kuroko wondered what he was dreaming of, or if he was dreaming at all. After a few minutes of staring at his roommate, Kuroko moved to detach himself and throw away the empty bag of popcorn he held when a strong grip held him back.

Startled, Kuroko turned back to Aomine, thinking the other had woken up, but to his surprise, Aomine was still fast asleep.

But the fact that his tanned hand held that of his paler one was undeniable.

Kuroko studied the limbs gripped together with interest, but already a smile was growing on his face.

Settling himself back down, Kuroko turned off the TV with the remote and curled his body against Aomine’s side after putting down a thin blanket atop the two of them. He wouldn’t admit, he actually really liked the taller teen. Aomine was funny, hardworking, and kind, but more than that, Kuroko loved the energy that constantly radiated off of him. It was infectious and powerful, and Kuroko liked the feeling of being swept away. But the thing he appreciated the most was the fact that Aomine had gotten him to enjoy basketball again. It had been the best feeling in the world.

**Author's Note:**

> Written: Feb 21-22, 2014


End file.
